Prince plunges sword into cake during his National Trust trip

Their Royal Highnesses used the Lord Lieutenant's ceremonial sword to cut a cake in recognition of the restoration

Published:18:55Friday 22 May 2015

The Prince of Wales used a ceremonial sword to cut the cake at the official re-opening of one of Northern Ireland’s most famous houses.

During the final day of their visit the Prince and Duchess of Cornwall toured Mount Stewart, a National Trust property in Co Down, which has undergone an £8m refurbishment.

The house on the shores of Strangford Lough is home to Lady Rose Loritzen, a distant cousin of the Duchess, whose family have lived there since the 18th Century.

Afterwards, Lady Rose said the Royal couple had been particularly impressed with the enhanced art collection which included paintings of the Duchess’s ancestors.

She said: “His Royal Highness has been here before the restoration and I think he was really impressed.

“The Duchess sadly, couldn’t come the last time so it was the first time Her Royal Highness had seen it and she loved it.

To slice the sponge cake which was iced with an image of Mount Stewart, Charles borrowed a silver sword from David Lindsay, Lord Lieutenant of Co Down.

Afterwards, the Duchess joked: “It’s ruined.”

The engagement included a walkabout in the manicured Mount Stewart gardens, and provided some light relief for the Royal couple whose four-day visit has been heavily focused on peace and reconciliation.

Retired Church of England vicar Jim Bates from Ballyholme, Co Down, was among the volunteers to speak to the prince.

He said: “He was very interested in the paintings and asked me whether the public were allowed in the house.

“I said that he had caused a bit of a log jam and he laughed.”

During the hour-long tour the couple viewed the well-known George Stubbs painting Hambeltonian which was displayed in a new frame above the staircase at Mount Stewart.

They also saw the Congress of Vienna Desk which belonged to Viscount Castlereagh when he was British foreign secretary at the close of the Napoleonic Wars, and is said to have been used at the signing of the Treaties of Paris and Vienna in 1814 and 1815.

Before departing for Corrymeela peace centre in Co Antrim the couple signed the visitors’ book and were presented with three Cedar trees.